Into the Blazing Night
by CorkyB45
Summary: After the events of Luther Braxton Lizzie is left with a head swirling with new memories. She's unable to determine what is real and what is fantasy. The only person left that can help her is Red. Between the two of them the truth of that night is revealed. The first chapter consists mostly of conversation between Red and Lizzie. It will ultimately be Lizzington.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer - I don't own the Blacklist and I'm not making any money from this story.

Red wondered if there would ever come a time when Lizzie would learn something about her past without blaming him. He didn't know what exactly the recovered memories contained. He just kept trying to keep her from going into the room at the end of the hallway. There was no reason for her to relive the death of her father at her mother's hands. No child should have seen it once, let alone relive it over twenty-five years later. He'd always thought it was odd that she never asked Red about her mother. The questions were always about her father, but if more of her memories returned he was sure the questions about her mother would start.

He continued to stare at the flames leaping from the wood in the fireplace grate as he absentmindedly sipped from his glass of Scotch. This was the first quiet moment that he'd had to himself since he'd allowed himself to be captured in Hong Kong. The only part of his plan to stop Braxton that didn't work out exactly how he' d envisioned was due to Lizzie and the damn FBI. He should have known that Lizzie would rush to his rescue, but he always seemed to have a blind spot when it came to her.

Dr. Wallace had certainly earned the money Red had paid him all of those years ago. When it was apparent that Lizzie needed to be kept hidden from those determined to find the Fulcrum, Red decided that she would always be in danger from her memories of that fateful night. If those memories were put out of reach she couldn't accidentally let slip something that would get her killed or worse. Yes, Red would have loved to know where the Fulcrum was hidden, but at that point in his life he wouldn't risk the life of a young girl to find it. Through the years Red asked Sam if Lizzie had started to remember anything about that night, but Sam always told him that outside of nightmares featuring flames she didn't remember anything prior to coming to live with him.

Lizzie left the restaurant after her meeting with Dr. Orchard. She didn't know what to think about the bombshell she had dropped on her. Who would have gone to such trouble to keep her from remembering the night of the fire or her parents? Her thought immediately was Red, except she knew how much he needed the Fulcrum to keep the "cabal" from killing him. The doctor also told her how concerned Red had been when he first located her and that he asked her if Lizzie would be hurt if she was allowed to continue to recover her memories. She backed up Lizzie's memory of Red trying to keep her from looking into a room in her memories. How he had yelled at her to not go in there, to turn around, how she didn't need to see what was happening in there.

Now that she's had a chance to process the memories, she wasn't sure she really saw Red where she thought she'd seen him when the memory was first recovered. When she was being lead from the burning house she thought she saw a man and a woman supporting Red out the front door of the house. But, that man looked like Red the way he is now, not what he looked like twenty-five years ago. What if Red was the man helping her to get out of the house. The man that ended up on the floor under burning pieces of the ceiling? What if her father was one of the men running out of the door, leaving her behind to die?

Lizzie knew the only person that could help her make sense of this jumble in her brain was the same man she'd rejected again just days earlier. She was ashamed of her reaction when Red had reached out to steady her when she'd stumbled out of that treatment chair. She knew that at the time she'd only been reacting to what she'd seen in her memories, now with time to think she realized she'd been unfair to him once again.

They were scheduled to fly out of Russia sometime tomorrow now that the CIA operative was free and France had a new contract to build and support a new pipeline. Since they had the night Lizzie decided to stop wasting time and would talk to Red tonight.

Lizzie called Red's latest burner phone which always seemed to appear on her phone under Nick's Pizza. One of these days she needed to ask Red how it was possible his always changing number was always programmed into her phone.

"Dembe is he there in his suite? I need to speak to him." Lizzie asked when Red's big bodyguard answered her call.

"I'm not sure if tonight is a good time. He's been drinking pretty steadily since we returned to the hotel." he said quietly.

Hearing this made Lizzie feel even worse than she had before. She suspected her behavior towards him since Braxton took her caused his descent into a bottle. She realized just how little she considered Red's feelings in the matter. If she hadn't decided she needed his help yet again, would she have thought about how he must be feeling after being rejected by her again. She really needed to start thinking about other people's feelings more.

"I need to see him, to apologize to him."

"We are in the penthouse. I'll let him know you are coming." Dembe told her after a moment's consideration.

Within minutes of hanging up the phone Lizzie was standing outside the only door on the hotel's top floor. She knocked on the door a little hesitantly. Dembe opened the door without the normal small smile he usually gave her in greeting.

"He is down the hall the first room on the right." Dembe told her before leaving her to retire to the room on her left.

She was a little surprised he didn't walk her to where Red was, but she supposed he felt they would need some privacy for the conversation to come. She followed Dembe's directions and found Red standing next to the floor to ceiling windows overlooking the city lights below.

"Red, we need to talk." Lizzie said to his back.

Red continued to face the window where he could see Lizzie's reflection in the glass. He was surprised, but happy to see that she still felt comfortable enough with him to seek him out. He took another sip of Scotch from the cut crystal glass in his hand before turning to face her.

"Of course Lizzie," he said quietly.

He moved to one of the chairs that were flanking the sofa and sat down, crossing his legs. He sat without speaking, waiting on Lizzie to start the conversation. Lizzie moved to the couch and took a seat near his chair. She wasn't used to this side of Red. The Red she was used to told stories to fill the silence between them. She didn't want to admit how intriguing each story, each little piece of his past that he shared with her was to her. Every tiny morsel of his past that he revealed made her hungry for more. She envied him having a past that he could remember so vividly.

"First, I'd like to say how sorry I am for what I said after you saved me from Braxton. I know your interest in me is not only because of the Fulcrum. If that was all you cared about you would have done exactly what Braxton did already. Dr. Orchard told me that the first thing you asked her was how I was and when she told you I was okay, that I was starting to remember. You asked her what I was remembering. She said it was memories about a fire and something called a Fulcrum. You asked her if it would hurt me to continue. She said she thought I'd be fine. She told me she thought that if she said it would have hurt me you would have stopped right then and there." Lizzie said the last as a question rather than a statement.

Red realized he had to give her the right answer. Lucky for him and his promise to never lie to her, he felt the true answer would also be the right answer.

"The Fulcrum was never worth more to me than you and your safety. I let the doctor continue because I didn't want the memory of that night to surface when you were alone. I wanted to be there to answer any questions about the Fulcrum you might have had after your memory surfaced. What I didn't want you to remember was the fire and what happened to your father."

The truth of Red's answer was plain to her. The miserable look on his face was one she'd never seen out of him before. She wanted to make him explain her memory of loud voices raised in an argument that she'd only remembered bits and pieces of, but the man's voice telling the woman that he needed the Fulcrum to stay alive. This was exactly what Red said about why he needed to find the Fulcrum. She wasn't sure if what she'd found hidden in the bunny was the Fulcrum or not. As soon as they returned to DC she'd get the item from Aram and give it to Red.

"I believe that you didn't want those memories to surface. Dr. Orchard told me something else the last time I spoke to her. She said that to her it looked like someone else had tapered with my memories, putting some type of block there to prevent me from recalling anything from before that night. This person or group took all of my earliest memories, any memories of my parents. Were you that someone?" Lizzie asked unable to keep the agitation out of her voice.

Red didn't know what it was that Dr. Orchard saw during the memory retrieval that made her conclude there was additional tampering. He'd been assured no one would be able to detect the memory block. If the doctor that helped him all those years ago had still been alive Red would have made him pay for his arrogance. He didn't see anyway to dance his way out of this question.

"I asked the doctor to just block the night of the fire. The fool blocked everything instead. I never wanted to take all the memories that you had of your mother and father. I hope that you don't recall those memories. Lizzie, your parents were anything but loving towards you. I'm sorry, but that's the truth."

Lizzie didn't know what to think about Red's confession. Was it possible that Red had saved her from a miserable childhood? Did all her happy memories with Sam make the loss of her earliest memories okay? It would take time to decide what her answer would be, for now, she would believe Red's description of her parents.

"We'll let all of that go for now. My memories of the fire are still sketchy, but they seem to be coming back a little bit at a time. One memory remains constant, there were three men and a woman there that night. You were one of the men. My memory of you seems to come at me from different angles. At one point I see you walking out the door with another man and woman. In another I seem to see you lying face down on the floor where parts of the ceiling were laying on you and they were burning. Which of the memories are really true? Why were you there that night?" Lizzie asked a little desperately.

Red was finally to a place where he felt he could share parts of that night with her. He still wouldn't share her father's name with her. He may be gone, but as long as Lizzie never knew him she could honestly deny any connection to the man. He hated taking the memory she thought was of her father, however he promised her the truth, always.

"Both memories are true. The man and woman that were with me forced me out the door after he started the fire to destroy any evidence that might have lead to us. I heard you screaming from a bedroom in the back of the house. Once they got me outside they let go of me. I couldn't leave a child to die in a fire. I ran back into the house. I found you hiding in a bedroom closet. We were almost to the door leading outside when part of the ceiling fell on us. I managed to shield you from the flames. You put your hand down on the floor to brace yourself. That is where you got the burn on your hand. There was type of metal shape on the floor that caused that strange shape. Somehow I managed to get up and got us outside. The other two were gone. I managed to hot wire your father's car and drive away before the police and fire department showed up." Red relayed his story in a voice nearly devoid of emotion.

She was finally grateful to finally get part of the story of that night. She realized this also explained the terrible scars on Red's back. His FBI file noted the extensive scarring. The file also contained pictures of all of his scars and tattoos. Despite the fact the pictures were right there in his file she never looked at them. It seemed too much like an invasion of his privacy. She knew she would have had trouble not flashing on those pictures every time she saw him.

"You told me once the story that my dad told about how he came to have a four year old child living with him. You were the friend that took me to Sam. Why didn't you just tell me that?"

"We were still on shaky ground after I'd confessed to ending Sam's life. If I'd told you that I was the one that took you from your parents I didn't know how you would react." Red said with his hands gesturing between them.

Lizzie scooted to the edge of her seat and leaned towards him.

"You never gave me a chance to decide. You have to quit doing that Red." her frustration with the man coming out in her voice.

Red moved to the edge of his seat and mirrored her position.

"Quit doing what Lizzie? Quit trying to prevent you from being hurt or quit trying to not risk making you angry? Do you want to know what one of my biggest fears has been in the past year and a half? The fear that you would follow through on your threat that our partnership was over, that you never want to see me again." Red told her with watery eyes that he couldn't hide sitting this close to her.

She didn't know what to say. She knew that she'd practically him once a month that she was done with him. She'd even gone so far as to resign and arrange for Red to be arrested, knowing that he would have been tossed into some place like the Factory. Now that she's seen first hand what she would have condemned him to, she would do everything in her poser to make sure he never got sent to such a place.

"I can't promise to never get angry at you again, but I don't see a time when I won't want to see you again." Lizzie said with a shy smile. "But, to prevent me from getting angry with you again, are there anymore secrets from my past that you are keeping from me? Besides my father's identity I mean."


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer - See Chapter 1.

A/N Sorry for the awkward break between the first chapter and this one. They are having a really long conversation and the first chapter was getting a little long.

Red couldn't believe how forgiving Lizzie was being regarding everything that's happened. He doubted that he would have found forgiveness in his heart if he'd been the one wronged so terribly. But, he admitted to himself, he would forgive Lizzie just about anything. Perhaps she felt the same way about him. He didn't know if he wanted to admit that he did have a secret of equal weight as the one he still kept about her father. He'd always found it odd that Lizzie didn't pester him with questions about her mother. It was always questions relating to her father.

"I always told myself that I would wait until you brought the subject up before I talked to about it. The only reason I'm going to talk about it now is to let you know my last secret. Like you I'd like to get everything out in the open. Please just realize that I can't tell you everything on the subject yet." Red found himself babbling slightly. He took a deep breath to get himself under control again.

Whatever this secret was it seemed to have Red awfully nervous. That in turn was starting to make her nervous too. He was usually so controlled, for him to be showing how nervous he is this had to be something that bothered him more than she could imagine. But, her curiosity was starting to win out over her nerves. She silently promised herself she would not get angry at Red no matter how the secret might affect her. She would think first before speaking this time.

"Can I ask you a question before I share my secret Lizzie?"

"Uh, sure I guess," Lizzie answered, puzzled by the question.

"Why is it that you've never asked me anything about your mother? You've asked what seems like hundreds of questions about your father, but nothing about her. Why is that?" he asked never taking his eyes off her.

Lizzie sat quietly, realizing that he was right. She'd never spared a single thought about her mother. She always wanted to know more and more about the father she didn't remember. Did she think she only had one parent? Why wasn't she as curious about her mother as she was her father? She didn't have an answer for any of these questions.

Red watched different emotions play out across her face. She went from puzzled to realization within moments and they were all displayed on her always expressive face.

"Um I don't know? Sam told me my mom was dead and I believed him. He never said anything about my dad, no matter how many times I asked him. I guess I thought that meant he either didn't know or that it hurt him for me to ask about my real father. Perhaps that I thought he wasn't a good enough father if I wanted to know about him so much. After years passed without an answer, I just quit asking."

"Do you remember anything about her now that the memory block is starting to crumble?"

"I still don't remember anything prior to the night of the fire. Dr. Orchard told me that the earlier memories might start coming back, but not to push it. Forcing the memories might cause them to retreat rather than come to the surface. As I mentioned I remember a woman was there arguing with a man I think was my father. It is the same woman that I remember helping/forcing you out of the house. Was that my mother?" Lizzie asked not know which answer she was hoping for here. If it was her mother she left her for dead in the fire and if it's not, she still wouldn't have any memories of her.

Red wanted to deny it. He wanted to lie and say it was just some woman that he had worked with in Naval Intelligence. But, he'd promised Lizzie that he would never lie to her. He knew if he lied to her here and was caught doing so, she would never trust him again.

"It was, she was ordered to get the Fulcrum from your father. He wouldn't tell us where it was, nor would he tell us where you were hiding. Your mother was actually the person who'd stolen it to begin with and she'd made you memorize its hiding spot and who it would be okay to talk to about it. Your mom searched the house for you while I waited with your father. When she came back she was frantic because she couldn't find you in anywhere in the house." Red pause for a moment before continuing, knowing the rest of the story would crush whatever love Lizzie might have had lingering in her heart.

"She kept pressuring him to tell her where you were, so he lied and told her he'd sent you somewhere else, once she had that information she shot him point blank in the head. I remember standing there, unable to believe that she'd just executed him in front of us. I was a lot younger and naive back then. I'm sorry to have to tell you Lizzie that your mother is the one that killed your father." He stopped talking when her watery eyes started to overflow and tears started to flow down her cheeks. He wanted to take her in his arms and console her, but his story was not yet finished.

"I didn't know until later that she'd been give orders to not leave any witnesses behind. I truly believe the only reason you survived that night wasn't just due to me. Your father told her you were spending the week with his parents in Florida. Remember when I said they were gone when I made it out of the fire with you? I found out that they drove down to your grandparents house. Your grandparents told her truthfully that you never came down there to stay with them. They were both executed just like their son, your father. Another fire was set to cover their tracks again." he paused thoughtfully. "I don't really believe in luck or fate, but that night something intervened to save you. When I got free from them outside of your house I told your mother that I could hear a girl screaming. She stopped for a few seconds to see if she could hear anything. For those very few seconds you were quiet. I told her I was going to go into the house that now had flames flaring behind the glass in nearly every window. I had to go back in that house Lizzie. All I could think about was, what if that was my daughter caught in there?" Red finished in a near whisper.

"What kind of monster was my mother? She didn't just kill my father, but my grandparents too. What about her parents, are they still alive? Do I have any family left or did she kill them all?" Lizzie couldn't stop asking questions long enough to allow him to answer.

"Is my mother still alive Red?" came her final question.

Red decided to answer her last question first.

"Yes, she's still alive. She's the biggest reason why I won't tell you who your father is, it would lead you to her. She and the Alliance only want the Fulcrum. They will do anything, kill anyone, torture anyone that stands in their way." he said earnestly.

Lizzie's head was reeling from everything she was learning about her mother. It wasn't until Red asked why she never had any questions about her mother that she realized her total lack of curiosity about the woman that gave birth to her.

"What I don't understand is that when Dr. Orchard recovered memories of that night I heard the woman telling my father that she'd taught me about her secret. And, that she wasn't going to leave without me. Why would she involve me in something like that?" Lizzie asked confused.

"You have to understand Lizzie she thought that teaching you where to find the Fulcrum would protect you. I didn't understand her logic then and I don't understand it now. All she did was put you in danger. She thought that your father hid you from her and that the Fulcrum was either lost with you or destroyed in the house fire. I only heard her theory about it being lost when I went back to work after recovering from the burns."

Red honestly didn't understand why her mother involved her in this entire mess. None of them were in a position to dictate anything to the Alliance. They were too young and inexperienced. This was shown to him in dramatic fashion on Christmas Eve 1990. He had his family ripped from him by a single order from the Alliance. They would all pay for it one day soon. He's been working towards that goal for twenty-five years.

Lizzie didn't understand how teaching a four-year old that there was a secret she could only share with certain people, she didn't even know if her father was on that list. How was this supposed to keep her safe. She didn't consciously remember her mother telling her that there was something hidden in her toy bunny. But, she must have remembered on some level since she grabbed it before Red pulled her out of the closet. She's held on to it ever since even with it being burnt.

"I don't remember her. I suspect that she didn't wake up one morning and decide to kill her husband and his parents. To do such horrible things that has to be a part of her personality. It sounds like you knew her, was that something you could have predicted she was capable of?" Lizzie asked quietly.

Red realized he was going to tell her more than he truly wanted her to know right now. He didn't want her to start hunting for her mother. He was afraid she would switch her focus on her past from the mystery of her father to the mystery of her still living mother.

"Your mother was assigned to work with me in an investigation during my time in Naval Intelligence. We were working on a case of a U.S. citizen suspected of treason. We were told that this person was part of a bigger group. This person managed to obtain some secrets that would be disastrous for the U.S. Government and her closest allies if they were to become public. During our investigation we became aware of what actions we were capable of committing in the name of national security. We did things we told ourselves were necessary and didn't reflect our true natures." Red paused while he remembered the moment when he realized he could torture and kill without remorse. Or at least without the amount of remorse he suspected other more normal people felt.

He continued, "We were lying to ourselves. It was this lack of remorse that lead to us being assigned to the team. I always suspected something showed up in my psych evals, both the ones I underwent when I entered Annapolis and the ones I regularly endured when assigned to Naval Intelligence. I'm sorry to say that your mother always showed less remorse and more book thirstiness than I did."

She was a little surprised that Red was sharing so much with her. She was both grateful for what he was telling her about his connection to her family and unhappy that her mother was capable of acts that were possibly worse than what she's seen Red commit. She knew from her field of study in college that there was a genetic component in some mental illnesses. Was it possible that her actions in keeping Tom a prisoner for so many months was out of her conscious control. Was she capable of horrible psychotic acts simply because her mother was?

"Do you think that I'm like her Red? Am I capable of the same horrible things that she committed?" she asked nearly in tears.

"No, Lizzie. I don't believe anyone is born evil. I believe that the argument of nurture vs. nature will prove that how a person is raised means more than a person's parents. I also believe that a person's experiences can cause them to act against their true natures at times. Maybe I need to believe that so I don't think of myself as a monster, regardless of what other people think on the subject."

Lizzie visibly flinched at Red's last sentence. She knew that she was guilty of calling him a monster on more than one occasion. It was just recently that she's realized that he became the man he was now because he was forced to, in order to survive. She wondered why Red had been forced to run a full year after the night of the fire. If the investigation didn't turn up the Fulcrum in a year, was Red's need to leave his wife and daughter tied to the Fulcrum or some other case he'd worked.

"Did your need to leave on Christmas Eve in 1990 have anything to do with the Fulcrum?" Lizzie asked unable to curb her need to find out if she was responsible for the destruction of Red's life.

Red understood the true meaning to her question. He'd love to tell her no, but he was again caught by his promise to never lie to her.

"It took me nearly ten months to recover from the burns I received the night of the fire. I made sure my location where I was recovering was a secret from everyone. Since your mother couldn't find me, she waited until my first day back on duty. She showed up and wanted to know if I'd found you in the house. I feared what might happen to you and Sam if I told her the truth, so I told her that I found you in the house dead from the smoke and heat. I told her I disposed of your body with the help of a friend. I hoped this would explain your body being missing from the house when the police and fire department investigated the fire. I realized too late that she didn't believe me. I got wind of her plans to kidnap Jennifer so she could swap her for you. One of the team tasked by her to carry out the job was someone that I worked with before. He warned me it was going to happen on Christmas Day. I found out on the 23rd. Trying to take them with me when I disappeared would have made me too easy to locate. I didn't tell Carla anything. She needed to be able to answer honestly when she was questioned. You know the rest of the story. It never seemed to be safe to go back for them, then they just disappeared." Red leaned back exhausted after revealing so much of a past he tried to keep from remembering on a daily basis.

Lizzie felt horrible to have been the cause of Red's family been torn from him, but she also knew she couldn't be responsible for what happened when she was a young child. Ultimately if was her mother that was responsible for destroying her and Red's lives.

"Do you know where she is now? Is she still working for the government?" Liz asked him finally.

"I know she's working with the Alliance. She's worked her way to the top tier in the past twenty plus years. I don't think Braxton mentioned you when he reported in to his contact. His MO was to have everything planned out before ever making his first move. If he admitted that he didn't recover the Fulcrum from the Factory his reputation would take a blow and he couldn't handle that at all. We've taken out all of those involved in your kidnapping. That should be enough to prevent your mother from discovering your new identity."

"Was my name Masha before you took me to Sam?" Lizzie asked remembering what she heard during the memory recovery.

He was surprised that she remembered that name. The only person that ever called her Masha was her mother. She insisted on calling her that Russian nickname. She never tried to hide her Russian heritage.

"Your mother called you Masha. Everyone else called you Mary. Your first name was Mariya. It was too unique to let you keep it. Since you were only four years old it wasn't hard to make you forget that name by calling you Elizabeth. Of course Sam always called you Butterball or Lizzie. Those few hours that I spent with you I called you Lizzie. Seeing you now I can't imagine calling you anything but Lizzie. " he said quietly.

Lizzie couldn't help the tears that filled her eyes at the tender look on his face. After listening to Red provide her with so much information about her past she made a decision she hoped she wouldn't regret.

"When we get back to DC I have something to give you. I found something sewn inside the toy bunny I had with me in the fire. I took it to Aram to see if he could figure out what it is." after a pause she continued, "There is something else waiting for me when we get to DC. The harbormaster's wife reported him missing. When I first encountered him I told him a story about escaped prisoners from Cumberland and that was why I was on the boat."

"Was it just the two of you on deck? How did they know you were the FBI agent he encountered?" Red asked with a confused look on his face.

She was near tears again as she started to wring her hands and sniffled.

"I gave him my card. If I'd known then what was going to happen later I wouldn't have done it. If I'd known what Tom was going to do I would have moved him off of that damn boat." Lizzie said miserably and finally gave in to her tears.

Red moved to sit next to her on the couch. He pulled her into his arms and she buried her head into his should and started to sob uncontrollably. He had a feeling her tears were not just for what happened to the harbormaster, or Tom, but for all of the horrible things she's seen or been forced to do in the past year. He held her until she cried herself out and just sat quietly in his arms.

"Did the detective say if he wanted to talk to you about his disappearance or his murder?" Red asked her quietly after letting her recover a bit.

Without moving away from Red's comforting embrace she said, "When he talked to me yesterday he said he was missing. When I checked in with Cooper this morning he asked me why a DC detective was asking to speak to me about the murder of a member of the department. I told him I didn't know. I told him that the detective told me that the man was missing, the fact that he's now talking murder was news to me."

Red sighed. For them to jump to murder so quickly told him that they'd found the body. The only way they found it was someone told them where it was located. This chatty Cathy didn't only threaten Lizzie, it threatened the members of his organization that helped the guard dispose of the body. Red was certain he was spilling his guts about Lizzie keeping Tom prisoner and that the infamous Raymond Reddington came to help her clean everything up. While Red could care less about his name being brought into it, but he had to make sure Lizzie and Mr. Kaplan were protected.

"Dembe" Red called out to where Dembe was sitting in another section of the suite.

"Yes Raymond?" Dembe said almost immediately from the entrance to the room.

"I need you to contact Mr. Kaplan and let her know the body of the harbormaster was located. that means our large Samoan friend is telling the DC Metro police all about what went on aboard that ship. Tell her to take all the necessary precautions to maintain her safety and freedom. Tell her to have someone find the guard and if it's possible to quietly get him taken, have them take him to a safe house that can't be traced back to us. If it's not possible just keep him under surveillance. I'll have more orders for her later." Red instructed him.

He never felt Lizzie make any move to object to his order to kidnap the guard. Dembe turned away and walked to another room while he pulled his latest burner from his pocket. Red could hear him murmuring from the other room and turned his attention back to Lizzie who still hadn't moved an inch. He craned his neck trying to look at her face. What he saw both surprised and pleased him. Her eyes were puffy, but closed in an exhausted slumber. He was sorry for her worry. But, he was pleased that she felt safe enough in his arms to fall asleep. He got as comfortable as he could, determined to let her get as much rest as she could. They would need to fly out within a few hours. They both needed some rest before then.


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: See chapter 1 or any of my other Blacklist stories. I'm still waiting for TPTB to give it all to me.

About an hour after Lizzie's appearance in Red's suite her cell phone began to ring. He pulled it from her blazer pocket before it could wake her. He read the name on the display before he answered.

"Hello Donald. Agent Keen is unavailable at the moment. Can I help you with something?" Red asked him.

"Reddington why are you answering Agent Keen's phone? Where is she?" Ressler demanded angrily.

Red tossed a coin in his head, heads he'd be honest, tails he would play with Ressler. He glanced at Lizzie briefly before deciding which way the coin would fall.

"Agent Keen came to my suite to discuss a personal matter and fell asleep on my couch mid-discussion. I would take that personally if I didn't know how tired she is tonight." Red decided the coin landed heads up.

"Just how do you know how tired she is?" Ressler asked suspiciously.

Red pulled the phone from his ear and looked at it in amazement. Sometimes Ressler seemed the biggest idiot that Red has ever met.

"Anyone that's looked at her, really looked at her, could tell she hasn't been sleeping. Just because you can't find your ass with both hands doesn't mean everyone else is so blind."

So much for being nice Red thought wryly.

"Well, wake her up I need to talk to her. I just received orders from Cooper to take the first flight out of here that we can get a seat on." Ressler rattled off.

From the sounds in the background it sounded like Ressler was packing in a hurry. Red was afraid that Cooper's orders had something to do with a certain detective.

"I'll have Dembe go pack up Agent Keen's things. You'll both fly back with me. Did Cooper say why you need to be back in such a hurry?" Red asked as Dembe, who'd entered the room when he heard Read speaking on the phone, left after Red handed him the key to Lizzie's room that he'd found in the same pocket as her phone.

"There is an investigation into the murder of one of DC's harbormasters. What do you know about Tom and a boat?" Ressler asked.

"Come up to my suite Ressler. This isn't something I want to discuss on the phone." Red told him before hanging up the phone.

As much as he was enjoying having Lizzie so close, he knew that she wouldn't want Ressler to see her asleep and drooling on his shoulder. She looked adorable. He shook her slightly.

"Lizzie you need wake up sweetheart. Ressler is going to be here shortly." he told her as soon as her eyes opened.

"Wah. . . . " was all she was able to get out. Her mouth was too dry to talk.

Red got up and poured her a glass of water from a plastic bottle. He was definitely not drinking any water from this area and had flown in his own. He handed her the glass silently and retook his seat at the end of the couch. She took a few sips before giving him a small embarrassed smile. She was a little ashamed that she'd fallen asleep on Red's shoulder.

"Why is Ressler coming up here?" she asked him finally.

"He received a call from Cooper to get back ASAP, so you could talk to the detective handling the harbormaster case. He asked me how much I knew about Tom and the boat. So, let me ask you, how much does Ressler know about the boat and what went on there?" Red asked looking her directly in the eyes.

"When I needed help moving Tom to a payphone to get information on where Berlin was hiding Fitch, I asked Ressler for help. I had to tell him about keeping him on the boat and that I'd been questioning him for information on Berlin. I didn't tell him anything about the harbormaster until this morning. He didn't want to know anything about it." Lizzie said knowing he wouldn't be happy that she went to Ressler instead of him.

Red was opening his mouth to tell her how disappointed he was that she said anything about it to Ressler when he heard a sharp know on the suite's door. He got up from the couch and grabbed a gun from where it was sitting on a side table. Lizzie realized she was getting much to accustomed to guns laying around wherever Red happened to be. She would never have believed that a couple of years ago.

Red held the gun behind his leg as he opened the door. Ressler stood on the other side and noticed the concealed weapon.

"Do you always answer the door armed Red?" Ressler asked sarcastically.

"Normally I have Dembe to answer the door. But, in answer to your question, yes I always answer the door armed. It's saved my life more than once. Come in and we can continue our conversation from earlier." Red said as he stepped to one side to let Ressler pass him.

Just as he was getting ready to close the door he was Dembe turn the corner in the hallway heading towards the suite. He waited for Dembe to reach the door before he turned and joined Lizzie and Ressler. He was unhappy to see that Ressler took his seat on the couch. He sat in the armchair next to Lizzie's end of the couch.

"I asked Donald to join us so we could discuss this business about the harbormaster in person. Ressler what do you know about the death of the harbormaster?" Red asked him seriously.

Ressler looked at them for a moment.

"I only know what Keen told me earlier today. She said that Tom killed him and that she tried to stop it."

"Did you wonder what happened to the body?"

"Again I just found out about it this morning and I haven't spent a lot of time thinking about it. I assumed the body was found on the boat. Why do I have a feeling the news about the murder isn't really news to you." Ressler said resignedly as he collapsed back into the corner of the couch.

Lizzie decided it was time to tell Ressler the complete story or as much of the complete story that she could. She didn't want to tip Ressler off to Mr. Kaplan. Who knew what he might feel obligated to do.

"Red found me on the boat when I went back to clean up the room I'd kept Tom locked up in. Both the guard and the body were gone and I thought the guard took the body to get rid of it." Lizzie told him.

"The guard disposed of the body? I'm guessing he had some help"

"I'm happy to know that you are not always a complete idiot Donald. Some of my people met the guard trying to drag the body off of the ship. We allowed him go with them when they buried the body. If the police have found the body it's because they were led to it. They have a body and a witness, along with a FBI agent's business card. I'm sure you can see where their investigation heading."

Lizzie didn't think there was anyway of getting out of this mess. Tom was gone, but she was as responsible for the murder as Tom. Aleko would surely tell the police about everything that went on during the four months she kept Tom locked up. She was sure he would say or do anything to make a deal with the DA.

"Are you alright?" Red asked Lizzie as he saw panic start to cross her face.

"What can I possibly tell them to keep them for arresting me?" Lizzie asked desperately.

"We can discuss our options on the plane. As I said Cooper wants you back in DC. I had Dembe pack up your things and Donald can grab his bags on our way out of the hotel. My plane is ready to take off as soon as we can get to the airport. If you don't want to a part of our discussions Donald I suggest you take a commercial flight home."

Ressler squirmed a little in his seat. He had an idea of what Red would do to keep Lizzie safe and out of jail. It went against all of his FBI training to even consider interfering with a police investigation.

"I may not like what Keen did, but she's my partner and I don't want to see her arrested for something that Tom did." Ressler finally responded.

"Fine. Why don't you grab your bags and meet us in the lobby in ten minutes. Dembe will take our bags down and bring the car around front."

Ressler knew when he was being dismissed. He rose without another word and walked out of the suite. There were still questions that he had about how much Red really knew. But, he understood that Red would never tell him more than he needed to know. Dembe followed Ressler out of the door carrying all of their bags. Red waited until the door closed behind the two of them before he continued talking to her.

"I don't want to talk about this part of our plan with Ressler. I assume he doesn't know anything about Mr. Kaplan. I had Dembe contact her with a warning since the guard met her and he gave her instructions to locate and detain our large Samoan friend in a secure location." he told Lizzie.

Lizzie wasn't surprised by his news. She suspected that he would take this action when she told him about the detective and the murder case. If she was honest with herself she was grateful that Red would take whatever action he needed to save her.

"What are you going to do with him?" ask Lizzie nervously.

"We need to find out everything he's told the DC cops. If as I suspect, he told them the whole sordid affair then he needs to disappear. I'm sure if I offer him enough money and an all expense paid trip to some tropical locale he'll accept. I don't doubt that he'll know what the other option will be." Red said as he stood up from the couch and perched his trademark fedora on his head. "Come on we have a plane to catch."

Shortly after their departure from the hotel they were boarding Red's plane. During the flight their discussion of Lizzie's situation went around in circles. It was agreed that Aleko would need to be found and questioned. After their third trip over the same ground Red called a halt to their discussion.

"We aren't going to figure out the best way to clear Lizzie's name tonight. I suggest everyone get a little sleep. We'll be landing in about three hours. I'm not sure when we'll get the chance for any rest or sleep in the next few days." Red told the group before reclining his seat back into a more comfortable position and closing his eyes.

They were still about thirty minutes out from DC when Red's satellite phone began to ring. He picked it up from the small table situated between the two leather seats in the middle of the cabin.

"Yes." Red said after answering. He sat listening for about twenty seconds before saying, "Text Dembe with the address we should be there in about an hour." Red said before disconnecting the call.

Once their plane was on the ground Red lead them over to a waiting sedan.

"Donald we will drop you off at your apartment. If Cooper should call you just tell him I've kept Lizzie with me. Tell him that Lizzie will be stopping to see the detective in charge of the case before she goes to the office. I will see him first thing in the morning at the Post Office. Tonight I need to gather a bit more information about what the police have discovered so far. That way she'll be armed with the same knowledge that the police have gathered." Red told him before climbing into the back seat with Lizzie.

Ressler didn't agree with Red's plan, but he climbed into the front passenger seat without any comment.

It took about ten minutes to reach Ressler's apartment. They only stopped long enough for Ressler to pull his bags out of the car's trunk, before they were on their way to the address that Dembe had received.

Lizzie had been quiet since their brainstorming session on the plane. She now spoke up.

"Where are we going?" she asked after she realized they were heading outside of DC.

"Mr. Kaplan managed to locate Mr. Aleko. She's holding on to him until we get a chance to talk to him. If you'd like us to drop you somewhere first we can do that. I just want to make sure you don't face the detective until you know exactly what he's shared with them."

Lizzie just nodded her head in agreement, never asking to be dropped anywhere. She knew it was possible that Red would do more than extract the testimony from Samuel. She honestly didn't know if she would try to prevent that fatal solution. She'd never been as scared of being arrested in her life. Her early criminal indiscretions had been nothing compared to the possibility of life in prison. Former FBI agents didn't last for long in federal prison.

Dembe pulled the car into a long secluded driveway. The house at the end of the lane was not up to Red's usual standards. Lizzie suspected there was a good reason for it. Dembe stepped out of the car and opened her door. She exited the backseat and stood next to Dembe while Red walked around the rear of the car to join them.

"Before we go in there Lizzie you have to stop thinking like an FBI agent. If you can't do that you shouldn't go into that room." Red warned her. "Can you do that?"

She stood there uncertainly, rubbing her scar to calm herself. She let out a big breath before saying, "I can do that."

Inside the house they could hear the large Samoan, Samuel Aleko, yelling to be set free. That if anything happened to him the police would know exactly who did it.

"Yes, but without your testimony or body they'll have no evidence." Red said as they entered the room where Tom's former guard sat secured by zip ties to a straight back chair set in the middle of the room. Surrounding him were three of Red's extended band of armed mercenaries.

"What are you going to do with me?" Samuel asked tentatively.

"That my friend depends entirely on you. If you answer my questions honestly I may offer you a way to get out of this alive." Red answered him while he removed his fedora and overcoat. After setting them on a table in a corner he turned back to Aleko and rubbed his hands together as if warming them.

"What is it you want to know?" Aleko asked, never taking his eyes off of Red.

"Hand me that other chair there would you please?" Red asked one of his men. He placed the chair he was handed directly in front of Aleko and sat down.

"The first thing I want to know is did you lead the police to the body?" Red asked crossing his legs and leaning back in his chair. He gave the appearance of settling in for a long chat.

"Yes I did. The police dug him up and I think the coroner has the body now."

Red was silent for a moment.

"If you continue to answer honestly you might just survive the night. Now, how much of what you witnessed did you tell the detective?" Red's look could have turned Aleko to stone.

"I told him about Tom being held there on the boat by an FBI agent after he'd been shot. I said that Tom wasn't what he appeared to be and that after he'd recovered she continued to hold him prisoner. That he had information that she needed to find the person responsible for the murder of one of her partners at the FBI."

Red simply stared at the man when he stopped speaking.

"That's not all you told him. You've said nothing about the murder of the harbormaster. What else did you tell him? And Samuel, don't make me ask you again. You won't like the way I ask you the third time."

Aleko hurriedly continued with his tale.

"They asked me if the harbormaster came back to the boat after meeting the FBI agent. I told him that he came back when I was outside smoking. When I came back in I saw him with Tom and called Agent Keen to come down and deal with all of it. Then once she was there Tom killed the harbormaster." Aleko hesitated, not wanting to admit to the rest of what he'd told the police. However, he had no doubt that he wouldn't enjoy the way he was asked his next question.

"I told them you showed up after Agent Keen let Tom go. That you arranged for someone to help dispose of the body and clean up the room on the boat where the murder took place. That's everything I told them." he finished with a sign of relief.

"Did you mention any members of my organization or provide them with descriptions?" Red asked him expressionless.

"I didn't give them any names, but I gave them descriptions. I doubt they would be able to pick any of them up off of the descriptions."

"Lizzie do you have any questions for him?" Red asked her over his shoulder.

"No. I can't think of anything more to ask." Lizzie answered him quietly.

"Since you appear to have told me the truth, here are you options. Option one, you get on my plane and you fly out tonight to somewhere nice and warm. I'll give you enough money to be comfortable for a long time and a new identity. I think you'll like this option much better that option two. The second option puts you wrapped in plastic and buried someplace dark and cold. Now which option do you want to choose?"

Lizzie was surprised that Red was offering him a choice. But, she was grateful that Aleko would be able to start over somewhere else, after all, she got him involved in the entire mess.

"I think you know exactly what my choice will be. When will I be flying out?" Aleko asked.

"Within the hour. You can buy whatever you need once you get where you are going. Have a destination in mind before you leave here so we can get your new identity with all the necessary paperwork prepared. Any place outside of the US will work, but you might want to consider a country without an extradition treaty with the United States." Red told him before getting up from his chair.

"Wait, I have a dog at my place. Will it be okay for me to take her along?" Aleko asked Red anxiously.

Red looked at one of his men and told him to get Aleko's dog to the airport. He then motioned for Dembe and Lizzie to follow him out of the room. They left the house and slid back into Red's car.

"Dembe after we get to the house call Stevenson and tell him to meet us there first thing in the morning."

Red then turned to Lizzie. "Call Harold and let him know you are back. I know Donald has probably already talked to him, but you should check in as well. Tell him you'll meet with the detective in the morning. Stevenson is an attorney and he will go with you when you talk with the police. I'd also like you to stay at the house with us tonight, in case they have your hotel under surveillance."

She has been around him long enough to recognize that none of what he said was a request. He's decided how this would all play out and for once, she's decided to follow his lead. Besides, she was sure this Stevenson was a better attorney than one she could afford.


	4. Chapter 4

A/N This story"s plot line has veered away from canon and is now an AU to what has been aired. I suspect as the season winds down the differences between what is shown on our TV screens and this story will become even more pronounced.

A/N2 This chapter was too long to post it all together, so I broke it down into 2 chapters and posted them both today.

Disclaimer - see chapter 1.

The next morning Carl Stevenson was already meeting with Red when Lizzie made her way into the kitchen. She'd been drawn in that direction by the smell of freshly brewed coffee.

"Ah, Lizzie good morning." Red said in his normal jovial tone. "I'd like you to meet your attorney Carl Stevenson. Carl, this is Elizabeth Keen."

"Hello Mr. Stevenson. Thank you for meeting with us so early." Lizzie said holding her hand out to the attorney.

Carl who had stood up when Lizzie entered the room reached out and shook her hand firmly.

"It's nice to meet you Agent Keen. Please call me Carl. Could we take a few minutes to talk before we head in to see the detective in charge of your case?"

"Of course and please call me Liz." she said before sitting down in one of the chairs set around a small kitchen table.

Red who had also stood when Lizzie entered the room said with a smile, "Let me get you some coffee Lizzie. I know what you are like if you don't have your coffee in the morning."

After Red had walked away Carl turned to Lizzie.

"Liz, Mr. Reddington has told me about what you will be facing once we meet with the police. What I don't think you know is that Mr. Aleko called the detective late last night and told him that he refused to testify against anyone involved. He told the police that he was leaving. They have been looking for him ever since the call, but they haven't found him. I need to ask for copies of the reports for the autopsy and any DNA or other trace evidence that might point to anyone involved. I understand from Mr. Reddington that it was your husband Tom Keen that committed the actual murder. Unfortunately, without being able to point to where he can be found, I would suggest that his name not be brought up. If the police mention him just state you don't know where he is and have no knowledge of his actions. I'm sure that nothing will show up in the crime scene investigation that will point towards you. Without a witness the police case is purely circumstantial as you well know. Do you have any questions or any information that might be of some help?" Carl asked her.

Red returned before Lizzie answered and place a mug of hot coffee in front of her.

"Here you go Lizzie."

She gave Red a smile of thanks before taking a grateful sip of the special blend that was what Red drank.

"No, I don't have any questions and I'm sure Red told you everything you needed to know. I need to check in with my superior before we head into DC Metro. Please excuse me for a moment." she told him before getting up from the table and taking her coffee with her.

Red and Carl chatted for a bit about other items that Carl was handling for an associate of Red's, Ezra. Carl knew that Ezra had been arrested by the FBI, but not which agent had called in the arrest.

"Red Cooper would like you to meet with him while I'm meeting with Detective Wilcox. I'm ready to leave if you are Carl."

With that said they all headed to the front door. Once outside Lizzie and Carl headed to Carl's BMW while Red and Dembe headed to Red's Mercedes. Red suspected that he knew what Cooper wanted to discuss with him. The sudden disappearance of the only witness against Lizzie had Red's name written all over it.

Carl drove directly to the DC Metro police headquarters. He followed Liz into the building and they took the elevator to the second floor where the homicide division was located. Even with the knowledge she had and with an attorney to protect her from revealing too much about the case, she was still nervous. On the way to the station Carl had told her to stick with the statement she'd already made to Wilcox, that she was on the boat for a reason she couldn't reveal due to National Security issues.

The elevator opened on to a hallway with glass walls. On the door opposite the elevator the glass doors had the words, "Homicide Division" stenciled on them. They strode through the doors and approached a desk with a young police woman sitting behind it.

"We are here to speak with Detective Wilcox." Carl told the young officer.

"Certainly, can I have your names sir?" she asked politely.

"Carl Stevenson and my client Elizabeth Keen." Carl answered her.

The officer walked over to a desk in the back corner of the room where a rather large, balding, middle-aged man was sitting. They saw him glance their way after the young woman said something to him. The two made their way to where Lizzie and Carl were still standing by the desk.

"Agent Keen, I wasn't aware you had returned to the country. Your supervisor said he would let us know when you returned." Wilcox said.

"I returned late last night Detective. I understand you have some questions for me." Lizzie said shortly.

Wilcox was a little surprised by her attitude. It was almost like she knew their witness had fled. He looked at the man standing next to her. Everything about him from his $1,000 suite to salon hair style screamed expensive attorney to the experienced detective.

"Of course. Why don't we find a quiet place to talk. Your friend can wait out here while we talk."

"Agent Keen is my client which I'm sure you already figured out. If you want to speak with my client it will only happen with me in the room." Carl told him firmly.

"Fine, follow me." Wilcox said as he turned to lead them to an interrogation room at the rear of the large room.

Red walked into the Post Office with Dembe about thirty minutes after watching Lizzie drive away with Carl. Red handled his own legal issues, but there was no way he could walk into the police station with Lizzie. He'd met Carl a few years earlier and after researching him he started sending some business his way. Mostly cases for men working for him that needed a defense attorney. Carl might not always get them off off, but for the most part they'd received light sentences. In the world that Reddington inhabited that was sometimes the best result you could hope to receive.

They stepped off of the elevator on the floor of the post office's main work area. It had become so common place for Red to show up here that not many of the agents turned as they walked by.

"Good morning Agents." Red said in his falsely jovial manner.

"Reddington, where is Keen?" Ressler asked.

"I believe she had a meeting with DC Metro. I'm sure she'll be in as soon as she's done. Dear Harold asked me to come in this morning. Is he in his office?"

"Yes, he's up there." Ressler answered turning back to his work.

Red climbed the stairs leading to Cooper's office. He opened the door without knocking and walked into the small paneled room.

"Red please come in, so happy that you knocked first." Cooper said sarcastically from his seat behind his desk.

Red gave a little chuckle as he removed his hat and sat down in one of the chairs across the desk from Cooper.

"I constantly hope to hear something interesting when I open your door Harold. Once again I was sadly disappointed. Anyway, what can I do for you today?" Red asked with his typical smug grin.

"When I spoke to you this morning to let you know the witness had disappeared it didn't seem like much of a surprise to you. Do I want to know what you did to make him go away?" Cooper asked him, not sure he really wanted to know the answer.

"Honestly Harold I don't know what you are talking about. I was shocked when you told me the man disappeared. That being said I'm sure that without his testimony Agent Keen won't be facing any charges." Red answered Cooper with what he knew was an obvious lie.

"Right. I hope are you correct Red. She wouldn't last very long in jail."

Red stood up and placed his hat back on his head, fixing the brim with practiced ease. "You know as well as I do Harold that she'll never spend a day in prison. I won't allow it to happen. Have a good day Harold and congratulations on getting into the medical trial. I hope it works out well for you." Red finished as he walked out of his office.

Carl and Lizzie took seats across the table from Det. Wilcox after he'd closed the door of the small room.

"Agent Keen as I mentioned on the phone previously, the harbormaster you met with onboard a docked boat in the DC harbor had been reported missing by his wife. After further investigation his body was discovered in an unmarked grave. Do you have anything to say about that?" the detective asked her keeping a sharp eye on her reactions.

"Detective I'm sure this isn't your first interview. My client won't be answering any questions that are not specific. Your question was too open to interpretation. Try again." Carl told him firmly.

Wilcox gave the lawyer a small grimace at being found out so quickly.

"I would think Agent Keen would be willing to talk with me and get this cleared up. I'm a bit surprised she showed up to our first meeting with an attorney in tow." Wilcox said again looking for any reaction.

Lizzie maintained a calm, stoic expression. She had too much experience in interviewing suspects to fall for such obvious ploys.

"Detective are you implying my client has something to hide because she is exercising her right to counsel during questioning?"

"Of course not counsellor," Wilcox said in reply before turning back to Lizzie. "You said that you were on that boat as part of an investigation. You told me you couldn't provide any details to me. I'm afraid Agent I'm going to need some explanation as to why you confronted Lt. Ames with a gun drawn. What case were you working on? We both know it didn't involve any escaped prisoners from Cumberland."

Lizzie glanced at Carl before speaking. When he didn't object to the question she answered with as much as she could or would tell him.

"The case is still classified and will be for years. I can't tell you any details regarding it. I'm afraid you'll have to accept my word as a sworn FBI agent that I did not kill Lt. Ames." Lizzie replied honestly, even if she did put a bit of spin on the story. All of her time with Red was rubbing off on her.

"That's not an acceptable response Agent Keen. We have a witness that tells a very remarkable story about you keeping your former husband prisoner on that boat after you shot him in the course of a case. And, how your ex-husband was responsible for the death of one of your partners. He says that he was the one that killed Lt. Ames. Further, he states that associates of, and this part of his story seems even more fantastical, Raymond Reddington helped dispose of the lieutenant's body."

"That is quite a tale detective. Does your witness also implicate me in the disappearance of Jimmy Hoffa or that I'm the second gunman on the grassy knoll in Dallas." Lizzie said with disdain.

"Detective it sounds like your witness has a vivid imagination. Do you have any physical evidence that implicates Agent Keen at all?" Carl Asked.

The detective was disappointed in not provoking some reaction from the FBI agent. He realized that this might be a tough case to make if they are unable to locate Mr. Aleko.

"I have an additional question Agent. Where can I find Tom Keen? The last address we show for him is a house that he shared with you in Georgetown. You've apparently sold that house and for all that I've been able to determine you are living in a motel. When and where did you last see your ex-husband?" Wilcox asked.

"I'm sorry Detective. I haven't seen Tom since he walked out of our house to walk our dog. Hudson started scratching at the door only moments later. I wish I could be more help."

Wilcox knew he wasn't going to get anything else out of her. He would need to find some hard evidence before going after her again.

"All right, thank you for coming in. If you think of anyway for us to locate Mr. Keen, please give me a call." Wilcox said as he handed her his business card before standing up.

Carl and Lizzie stood up in unison and bid Wilcox goodbye. After they left and the elevator doors closed behind them, Wilcox's Captain walked up to him where he was still standing near the interview room.

"Well, what do you think? Does she know anything about Ames's murder?"

"I think she knows something about what happened. I'm still finding it hard to believe all of Aleko's story. But, she didn't react as I would have expected to such an outlandish tale." Wilcox answered uncertainly.

"Keep trying to find the witness. Without him here to testify we don't have a case unless you turn up some type of physical evidence or other witnesses. I've already tried getting her superiors to give me details of her current case. He refused and the Director himself called the chief. He told us to not contact Agent Keen again without evidence against her. The way the chief made it sound we wouldn't find that evidence." the captain told him before walking away.


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer - see chapter 1.

Carl dropped Lizzie off at her motel so she could pick her car up before heading into the office.

"If the police contact you again don't say anything unless I'm with you."

Lizzie told him that she wouldn't say anything without him and got out of the car. As he drove away she noticed a suspiciously nondescript car parked across the street from the motel. She suspected that Wilcox had put her under surveillance and that would have just been annoying if she worked at the FBI headquarters. Working at a black site made it impossible for her to do her job while under watch by the police.

Instead of entering her car she climbed the stairs up to her room on the second floor. Before calling Cooper to find out what she should do with her tail, she decided to call Red to make sure her tail wasn't thanks to his overprotectiveness. Picking up her phone she dialed Nick's Pizza.

"Lizzie how did it go?" Red asked as soon as he answered.

"It went about how we expected. He wanted to know about what case I was working on and when I wouldn't tell him he asked if I knew where Tom could be found."

"Since you couldn't answer his question, how did he leave it?" he asked.

"I told him I had no idea where Tom could be found. But, I have a question for you. Did you assign someone else to follow me?"

Red didn't immediately answer knowing she would not be happy with him, but he also knew there was no way she would spot the tail this time.

"If you've spotted someone doing surveillance they are not my men." Red finally answered.

"Nice sidestep of the question Red. We'll discuss that more later. Now I have to call Cooper to find out how I'm supposed to work with the police watching me." Lizzie said with her annoyance growing.

"If you need my help getting the police to back off just let me know." Red told her before hanging up.

She didn't even want to consider how Red would deal with the police across the street. She was pretty sure it wouldn't help her case. She dialed Cooper and waited for him to pick up.

"Cooper" she heard him say.

"Sir, it's Agent Keen. I seem to have a problem."

"What is it Keen? They didn't arrest you did they?" he asked quickly.

"No sir. I answered their questions, but the detective apparently didn't believe me. There is an unmarked car across from my hotel keeping an eye on me. I don't think you want me to lead them to the post office."

"Unbelievable! The Director called the DC Police Chief and told him to back off of you until they had solid evidence against you. I'll contact the detective's superior to tell him he is violating the Director's orders. I'll call you back shortly." Cooper said as he hung up.

Lizzie decided to take advantage of the break to clean up and dress in a fresh outfit. She was just finishing when her phone began to ring.

"Keen"

"Agent I think you'll find the unwanted eyes gone now. I'll expect you in the office shortly." Cooper hung up.

Okay, he's a little pissed off, she thought to herself. She just hoped she wouldn't face the brunt of his anger when she got into the office.

Just as Cooper said the car was no longer parked across the street when she got down to her car. As she drove to the office she kept an eye on her mirrors to make sure there really wasn't someone following her.

Once she made it into the office Cooper pulled her into his office. After directing her to a chair he sat down behind his desk.

"Agent I don't know the exact story about you and deceased. And, I don't want to know. I know you didn't kill him. I've already spoken to Reddington and he's assured me that he doesn't know what happened to the witness. I of course don't believe a word of his denial, but if he wants to make someone disappear they won't reappear unless he wants them to do so. The Director is of course aware of Red's involvement with the task force and his requirement that he will only speak with you. As long as the witness doesn't suddenly reappear I think you will be free to continue working here. Just keep an eye out to make sure DC Metro don't put another tail on you."

"Yes sir. i appreciate your belief in me." Liz answered gratefully.

"That will be all Agent." Cooper said in dismissal.

She no sooner made it to her office when she heard a knock on her door. With a sigh she called for the person to enter, it was Aram.

"I know you are busy, but I wanted to return this to you." Aram said holding the mysterious little box in his hand.

"Did you discover what it is?" Lizzie asked anxiously.

Aram looked almost ashamed at his inability to discover more than the barest of details about the box.

"It's some kind of recording device. It looks like old technology. I couldn't find anything that would allow me to play it. I know you wanted to keep this a secret, but maybe Mr. Reddington would be able to help you." Aram said before placing the box on her desk.

Lizzie reached out to pick up the box and placed it in the pocket of her blazer. She felt better with it back in her possession. As much as she trusted Aram, knowing what she did now about the item, she wanted to get it to Red as soon as possible.

"Thanks for looking at it for me. I'll ask Red myself if he knows how to get it working."

Aram gave her a shy smile before leaving her office. Lizzie worked without further interruption the rest of the day. Just as she'd sent her final report to Cooper her door opened again.

"Lizzie you've been slaving away for hours. Tell me you are ready to grab something to eat. I know this lovely little Chinese place in Georgetown." Red asked giving her one of his rare genuine smiles.

Lizzie leaned back in her chair trying to stretch out her aching back.

"God, that sounds wonderful. I just realize I haven't had anything to eat all day. Let me just give you something before we go. Do you mind locking the door?" She said as she closed her office blinds.

Red obediently stepped fully into her office and locked the door behind him.

"What's the matter Lizzie? Are you okay?" Red asked with obvious concern.

"Yes, there's nothing wrong. I just have the item that I'd given to Aram. I'd like to give it to you. I'm sure you will be able to keep it safer than I can." Lizzie said holding out the small box on her palm.

Despite knowing that Lizzie found what was likely the most dangerous item on Earth, he was still shocked to see it in her hand.

"Are you sure you want to give that to me?" Red asked quietly without looking at the Fulcrum, he kept his gaze on her face.

Lizzie lowered her hand until she held the box next to her thigh. She looked at him in surprise and confusion. She thought he would be happy to get his hands on the Fulcrum at last.

"Is there some reason I shouldn't give it to you?" she asked.

"No. I just know how concerned you were that the only reason I was interested in you was the Fulcrum. You aren't worried that this is the case any longer?"

Lizzie looked pained. She didn't like the reminder of how she'd reacted after her memories were first recovered. She still felt foolish for believing Red's feelings for her were not genuine.

"I believe that you need me for more than this little box. Please take it." she said as she once more held it out to him.

He reached out and lifted the box off of her outstretched hand.

"Thank you Lizzie. And, I'm not just thanking you for this." he said with a gentle smile.

Lizzie grabbed her purse and computer bag. They walked through the empty office to the elevator and a short time later they climbed into Red's car.

"Dembe let's head to that delightful little Chinese restaurant in Georgetown. I'm going to show Lizzie how wonderful their food is compared to the places here in DC." Red said expansively.

At the restaurant Red introduced her to the brothers that owned it and their two sons. They seemed delighted to see Red again. She suspected that he and Dembe were frequent customers. In fact, neither of them needed to order. Once they were seated and Lizzie's drink order was taken, dishes started to appear at both Red and Dembe's tables. Dembe refused to join them to give them some privacy.

Red was right, as usual, the food was some of the best she'd ever eaten. She knew that she would be coming here again.

Their conversation never strayed to work or her interview with detective Wilcox. He kept her entertained with stories of his travels. At different points in the evening the brothers stopped to share stories with them.

After dinner they drove only a brief time before Dembe was pulling into an underground parking structure at a building called the Audrey. Lizzie assumed this was Red's latest safe house. When she saw him pull into the spot marked as Penthouse One she was certain that she was correct. Without talking they rode the elevator to the top floor. Dembe unlocked the door and then handed the key to Red.

"I will be downstairs if you need me." Dembe said to Red before entering the elevator once again.

Lizzie walked into one of the most beautiful yet comfortable looking apartments she'd ever seen. Some of the decor screamed 'Red' to her. Yet a lot of the furnishings were something that really appealed to her. There was a formal dining room with a wood table and six chairs in cherry, with a matching hutch fully stocked with china. Beyond that was a small gourmet kitchen with high end appliances and granite countertops.

When she turned her attention to her right she saw a small formal living room. The furniture here was obviously for show. A small couch and two armchairs were flanked by antique tables with Tiffany lamps on each end of the couch.

A little further into the apartment separated from the formal living room by a wall was a more relaxed den area with a much more comfortable couch covered in throws and pillows in contrasting, but co-ordinating colors. A recliner sat next to the couch with wood tables of good quality, but not antiques like the formal living area. Mounted on the wall opposite the couch was a 65" HDTV.

She felt odd moving on to the bedrooms, but Red wasn't complaining about her being nosy. Down a short hall she found three doors. One lead to a guest bath decorated in varying shades of brown and rust.

The next door she opened was what appeared to be a quest bedroom. The color scheme leaned towards what she would call sea foam, something between pastel shades of green and blue. The room had a queen size bed made up with blankets, no comforters. Lizzie had to smile at this odd quirk of Red's. She leaned towards quilts rather than a comforter, but she has learned to appreciate blankets a bit more. A dresser with a mirror and a tall chest of drawers, along with nightstands on each side of the bed completed the room.

The last door, no surprise, lead to the master suite. This room was much larger that the guest bedroom, but still managed to feel cozy. This room had a king size bed with all the same items as the guest room, with the addition of an armchair in the corner of the room. In the opposite corner was an open door leading to the ensuite bathroom.

She figured in for a penny, in for a pound and walked over to look at the master bath. She suddenly found herself intensely jealous of the lucky owner of this bathroom. There was a spa tub big enough for two and a separate glass shower enclosure with multiple shower heads. The shower was also big enough for two. The toilet was in a separate small room that would allow privacy for a couple to share the bathroom at the same time. She saw a counter with two sinks and a single long mirror behind the sinks.

Red has been silently shadowing her as she made her way through the apartment. He was reasonably sure that she liked what she saw. He realized that she didn't realize one of the best features couldn't be appreciated until the sun rose. The view of the Potomac was simply amazing with the sun rising behind it.

"What do you think Lizzie?" Red asked her.

She wasn't sure why he was asking. The apartment was very nice. Most of the places that Red borrowed were as nice, if not better. She really didn't like some of the huge showcases he stayed in. She like this place much more than those cavernous echoing monstrosities.

"It's nice. A bit smaller than most of the places you borrow." Lizzie said with a teasing smile.

Red laughed at the the truth of her statement.

"That's true, but I didn't borrow this place. I bought it." Red said.

She was shocked to hear that Red had actually bought a permanent base for when he was in DC. Sure, the building had what appeared to be excellent security. You needed to swipe a badge to enter the garage and the elevator. It was a good bet that there was a security guard in the lobby to keep any unwanted guests away.

"Wow, I'm surprised. All summer you kept telling me to change hotels every couple of days. I thought you made it a point to never stay in one place for more than two nights."

"You assume that I bought this place for myself. I didn't. I bought it for you." Red said bracing himself for what he knew was to come.

"No . . . . no Red. I'm perfectly capable of buying my own place when I'm ready." Lizzie said almost on cue.

"Lizzie come sit down." Red said leading her into the den.

He sat down on one end of the coach and waited for Lizzie to give in and join him.

"Red please don't try and talk me into this." Lizzie practically begged as she sat down on the opposite end of the couch.

"Lizzie there is no need any longer for you to live in a motel on a daily basis. Berlin is gone as is Tom. You don't need to hide. The motel is a soul sucking drain on you. You need a home. You need to start building a normal life for yourself. Please for me, stay here at least for the night. The bathroom is stocked with all of your brands and there is a change of clothes in the the master bedroom. See if you can be comfortable here." Red bargained with her.

She wanted to refuse, knowing that if she stayed she may in fact accept. But, he was right about the motel and how tired she was of not having a place she could call her own.

"Fine. I'll stay tonight since I'm here already. How will I get my car tomorrow?"

"I'll have it delivered to you in the morning." he said with a bright smile that she couldn't help but return.

He handed her the key card he'd received from Dembe and stood up. As he was gathering his overcoat and hat she asked, "Where are you staying tonight?"

"Oh, I borrowed a place close by. There are a few things in the kitchen for breakfast and a lovely bottle of red wine. Relax and enjoy your night sweetheart." he said before walking out of her apartment.


	6. Chapter 6

A/N Let me first apologize for taking so long getting this chapter out. It has been written for weeks I just haven't had time to type it up and edit it. RL and other writing has taken all of my spare time. I hope the next chapter doesn't take as long, but no promises. Sixty hour work weeks don't leave a lot of time for writing for pleasure.

A/N 2: There has been a lot of changes in the Blacklist world since I wrote this chapter. This story is obviously AU at this point. I like the idea of Lizzie living in the apartment Red bought for her.

Disclaimer: The Blacklist characters don't belong to me. They belong to NBC and Sony.

Lizzie decided to take the night to enjoy the master bath's spa tub as Red had suggested. She opened the bottle of wine and carried a glass with her back to the tub. After undressing she sank down into the hot swirling water and finally relaxed for the first time in weeks. She slowly sipped from her wine glass realizing Red really did know his wines.

She decided to get out when her skin was pruned and pink from the heat. After sliding on a pair of shorts and tank top from one of the drawers she wandered back out to the kitchen. She rinsed her wine glass out and placed it in the dishwasher.

She stood for a moment trying to figure out what was bothering her about the apartment. Then she realized, the apartment was quiet. She had gotten so used to the noise that bled through the thin walls of the motel. She was getting ready to turn on the TV for some noise when she saw her cell phone. There was one person who could help dispel the oppressive quiet and if she knew him, he was close by. Probably much closer that she would normally have liked.

"Lizzie is everything alright?" she heard Red say almost as soon as the call connected.

"Everything is fine. It's just that I've gotten accustomed to almost constant noise. It's too quiet. Why don't you come back up here from whatever apartment you and Dembe are currently sharing here? We could have a glass of wine and talk for a bit." Lizzie asked hoping that she guessed correctly.

Red realized again just how perceptive his Lizzie was when it came to him. He should have known she would deduce that if he was going to buy her an apartment here he would arrange for one of his own.

"I'll be right up after I take a shower. Give me about ten minutes."

It was closer to fifteen minutes later when she heard a knock on the door. She opened the door and was surprised to see a very relaxed looking Red. He was dressed in black jeans and an untucked pinstriped button down shirt. He always looked good in his suits, but she admitted to herself that his look suited him as well.

"May I come in Lizzie?" Red asked in his deepest voice as he noticed her staring at him.

Lizzie gave a little shiver in reaction to his voice as she focused her eyes on his face.

"Yes, sorry, please do come in," she said as she moved to let him step past her into the room. She closed her eyes as the scent of his cologne filled her senses. She knew that she would be able to find him blindfolded just by his unique cologne alone.

After closing the door she turned to see Red standing just inside the kitchen. He looked quite at home standing here in her apartment. She gave an almost visible flinch at the realization that she already thought of Red's gift as her own property. She made the decision to not fight the idea any longer. He was too stubborn to give up trying to get her to accept the apartment and would eventually wear her down.

"Would you like a glass of wine?" she asked him.

"Actually I think I'd prefer some tea. I know there are some delightful teas here in the cupboard. I think you'll also find a porcelain tea set in the cabinet over there." Red said motioning for her to get the teapot.

"Tea sound good too." she said with a smile.

Lizzie still had a number of things to discover in the apartment and this was her first real look at the contents of the china cabinet. She immediately recognized the pattern on the china. It looked exactly like the china Sam once had in a similar china cabinet in their home in Omaha. The china had been stored in the basement of the house she'd shared with Tom. After her marriage was exposed as a lie she had sold all of the contents of the house to a local auction house. She knew she wouldn't be able to keep very much with her at the motel. After time passed she started to regret not keeping more of the items she'd inherited from her dad.

"I know this china. They were my dad's. How did they end up here?" she asked Red shocked.

He was in the process of filling the red kettle she'd seen on her stove while she looked for the wine glasses. He deliberately pointed her towards the cabinet for just this reason.

"When I heard that you sold the house and all of its contents I decided to obtain certain items I thought you might regret selling. There is a storage unit with all of those things. The china set was one of those items. Lizzie this china set belongs with you, they are a family heirloom. Sam would want you to have them. When you are ready I'll take you to the unit and you can decide what you want to keep. The unit will be there if you decide to just leave everything in it." Red replied gently.

Lizzie was constantly amazed how thoughtful and sweet Red really was under the armor he wore as the Concierge of Crime. She couldn't help the tears that were flowing down her cheeks. She rushed to Red and threw her arms around him. He held on to her tight as she sobbed uncontrollably with her head tucked under his chin. He simply let her cry, murmuring words of comfort and held her until she calmed down again.

When she finally regained control she excused herself to go wash the tears from her face. While she was gone Red finished brewing the tea and carried everything on a tray to the den. He poured them both a cup of the fragrant tea.

She walked into the room and took a seat next to him on the couch. She sat much closer to him than normal, only a few inches of open space between them.

"Tell me how you like the apartment so far? There is an amazing view from the balcony." Red told her after they'd spent a few minutes quietly sipping their tea.

"The apartment is wonderful, but the FBI would know that I can't afford this place on my salary. How would I be able to explain living here when I'm asked by OPR?"

Red was happy that she was past the point of refusing the apartment. She was correct. She would never be able to afford the place on her own. He knew the entire task force was under constant scrutiny to make sure Red wasn't exerting undue influence over them.

"I'm sure we can establish a trust account that would appear to have come from Sam. There actually was a fund established for you as a child. I could have the records altered to show there was enough money in the account to allow you to purchase this place." he told her.

Knowing what she knew now about his involvement with her adoption by Sam, she didn't find it a surprise that he'd provided for her financially. At the time she left for college she never questioned how Sam was able to afford tuition, a dorm room, and all the other expenses involved on the small salary he earned. Her four years to earn her BA and an additional two years for her advanced degree had to cost nearly five hundred thousand dollars. She graduated without taking out a single student loan.

"I have a feeling most of the expensive things I've received was due to you and that trust account. Despite Sam being frugal with anything he spent on himself, I never wanted for anything. I'm even more embarrassed now over how I've treated you." Lizzie said with a slight blush coloring her cheeks.

Red never wanted her to feel that she owed him anything, but her blush made her even more adorable than he normally found her.

"You had no reason to think about any of these things Lizzie. What I did to your life by showing up like I did excuses a lot in my eyes. I'm not sure I wouldn't have felt the same way about you if our roles were reversed. I only brought the account up as a way of explaining away the money needed to purchase this place."

She decided to let it go. He wanted her to have this place and she decided to accept. It was a beautiful space and with all the ugliness she saw in her work she needed some beauty in her life as a counterpoint. She leaned a little to her left until she was able to lean her head up against his shoulder.

"Thank you." she said simply.

Whether she was thanking him for the apartment or the account he didn't know. All he knew was that he loved the feel of her so close to him. He reached his arm up and wrapped it around her shoulder pulling her closer.

"You're welcome Lizzie." he said and pressed his lips against her forehead in a brief kiss.

He gradually felt her weight getting heavier and heavier against his chest. Her breathing became more even and regular. He'd wake her up in a little while and move her to her bed. Until then he wanted to enjoy holding her for a little longer.

"Lizzie, wake up sweetheart." Red called to her quietly.

Slowly her eyes opened and she sat up. She didn't remember falling asleep, but she knew it was due to the feeling of safety that she always experienced around him.

"I'm sorry I didn't mean to fall asleep on you." she said running her fingers through her hair, barely holding back a yawn.

Red stood up and held out his hands towards her, silently offering to help her up. "It's okay sweetheart. Let's get you to your bed, you're exhausted."

She took his hands and let him help her to her feet. He let go of one of her hands and used his other hand to lead her to the master bedroom. He pulled the bed clothes down and got her settled before covering her up. He leaned down and gave her a chaste kiss on her forehead.

"Good night Lizzie," he said tenderly.

She followed him with her eyes as he crossed the room to the door. As he reached for the light switch she called out to him, "Red'.

"Yes, Lizzie?" he answered while turning to look back at her.

"Would you stay here with me tonight? I'm so tired of sleeping and waking up alone." she said miserably.

Red stood almost frozen at the door. He understood what she was feeling only too well. While he wasn't what you'd call a monk, he seldom spent the entire night with a woman. He could never relax his guard enough to fall asleep with a stranger in his bed. The last woman he'd slept with had been Madeleine Pratt. He doubted that would happen again after their last adventure.

"Never mind, it's okay. Forget I asked." Lizzie said embarrassed by his lack of response.

Red had been so lost in thought he didn't realize how it looked to her. "I'm sorry, I was surprised. I'd be happy to stay if you still want me to. I will just need to call Dembe to let him know where I'll be so he doesn't become concerned. I'll be right back."

He called Dembe from the living room and let him know that he would be staying the night. Dembe sounded pleased and bid him a good night. He made a quick stop in the guest bathroom before returning to Lizzie. He slipped off his shoes and stretched out on top of the covers.

"This isn't exactly what I meant Red. Get comfortable and get under the covers with me. We are adults. I think we can both sleep under the covers without anything else happening . . . if we don't want it to." she said the last with a smile.

Red returned her smile and undressed until he was down to his white silk boxers and while t-shirt. After folding his clothes neatly he slid back into bed, this time under the covers. He carefully kept to his side of the bed. The last thing he wanted to do was cross some invisible line with her. Yes, she asked him to share her bed for the night, but he didn't know what that meant to her. Did she just want someone with her so she wouldn't feel alone or did she want more. He was less afraid when facing half a dozen men with guns that he was here, right now, with her.

Lizzie thank goodness had no such worries. Or, at least it appeared that way to him. After what seemed like mere moments she had moved closer and laid her head on his shoulder again.

"Is this okay?" she questioned quietly

"Of course it is," he answered just as quietly.

He slowly wrapped his right arm around her back and pulled her closer. It had been so long since he'd shared a bed with someone he truly cared about. Just lying here, holding her felt so right. For the first time since that fateful Christmas Eve he felt at peace. What this woman could to to him scared him at times. He worried what would happen to her if any of his enemies realized the depth of his feelings for her.

"Red?"

"Yes Lizzie?"

"Thank you for staying tonight. I really didn't want to be alone. I'm so confused about things between us. I think my feelings for you are changing, but I don't know if you'd even want a relationship with me. I need to know how you feel."

His brave Lizzie, much braver that him. He wasn't sure he would have ever raised this question with her.

"When I first turned myself in and demanded to speak only to you, I thought that you could use the reputation for putting the criminals on my list away to advance your career. That this would be a way to help Sam's little girl and put away some truly horrendous people." Red said quietly. "Then I saw you walk down those steps without a hint of fear and I knew I was lost. I never believed in love at first sight. I never thought I was capable of feeling love again. But, then I met you. You want to know how I feel about you Lizzie . . . . I worship the ground that you walk on. Every time you've said you were through with me I felt like you'd ripped my heart out and stomped it into pulp." Red forced himself to stop speaking. He never meant to say so much. He hoped that listening to him describe how much he loved her didn't scare her away.

"Oh Red! I was just so angry every time I said that and I will admit that I can act very childish at times. I promise you that I will try and think before I speak from now on." Lizzie said after lifting her head so she could look him in the face. "And, I think I'm in love with you too. I want to take this slow. Is that okay?"

Red felt like his heart both stopped and tried to burst our of his chest at the same time. He never thought he'd hear those words spoken by her about him. He was certain she could hear and feel the pounding of his heart from where her head lay on his chest.

"Of course it's okay. We have time Lizzie," he said before kissing the crown of her head.

Gradually her breaths evened out as she slipped into sleep. Red wanted to follow her into dreams, but he also wanted to stay awake to not miss a moment holding her to him. As hard as he fought to stay awake her presence brought him a peace he'd not felt in years and he followed her into dreamland.


	7. Chapter 7

A/N The rating for this story will move to M in the next chapter. I know it's taken a long time getting them to that point, but it seemed realistic to me to have them grow closer before hoping into bed. If you've made it this far I hope you hang around for what is yet to come.

Disclaimer: The Blacklist characters don't belong to me. They belong to NBC and Sony.

Red found himself in the same position the next morning. Waking in the morning with Lizzie in his arms was not the most surprising part of waking this morning. The most surprising thing to him was that he slept, not plagued by the nightmares that normally visited him. He was glad that she was spared his normal restless sleep. On the average he only managed about four hours of sleep, on a good night he might manage six. Looking at the clock on the nightstand he was surprised to see that he'd gotten nearly eight hours.

To Red it seemed that Lizzie had somehow sensed when he woke up. He'd been very careful to not move and tried to keep his breathing deep and even. Despite his care he felt her begin to shift in his arms as she surfaced from the depths of sleep. She rubbed her hand against the broad chest that was acting as her pillow before raising her head to look at him.

"Mmm, good morning!" Lizzie murmured.

"Good morning sweetheart." Red answered her quietly. "Did you sleep well?"

She rested her chin on her hands that were still sitting on his chest.

"I slept better last night than I have since I first learned about Tom. Thank you for staying with me."

While the last thing he ever wanted was to be included in any thoughts she had of Tom, he understood that she meant it as a positive. The fact that he was as much a comfort to her as the "perfect" husband that Tom pretended to be.

"I'm glad Lizzie. You need to get more rest than you've been getting. I should be the one thanking you really. I haven't slept peacefully in many years, decades really. Last night was the most restful sleep that I can remember. It had to be your calming presence that allowed me to rest so well. Thank you for that." Red told her in a voice still gravelly with sleep.

Lizzie didn't want to move, but she knew they couldn't stay in bed forever. The task force would be waiting for the next name on Red's list. She pushed herself to a sitting position next to Red.

"We need to get ready and head into the office. I hope you have another name for us. I don't want to be stuck in the office filling out reports again today." Lizzie said looking down at him.

"I'm sure I can find someone for you to find. I'll save you from death by paperwork somehow." he said smiling up at her. "Before I head downstairs to get ready I want to show you something."

He pulled her up with him and he moved them over to the sliding doors that lead to a balcony. He opened the drapes covering the door and slid them open. He looked over to her as he led her out onto the balcony. He watched her eyes widen in surprise at the splendid view of the Potomac spread out below them.

"Oh my, you weren't kidding when you said it had a great view of the Potomac. I think I've just found my second favorite thing about the apartment." she said leaning over and wrapping her arm around his waist.

He pulled her closer so he could wrap his arms around her shoulders. "And what pray tell is your favorite thing?"

Lizzie smiled up at him before saying, "The bedroom with you in it of course."

Red was shocked to hear her say that, but he felt the same thing. Any place that Lizzie was became his favorite place in the world. Without saying a word he leaned down and gave her a tender kiss. He would have loved to deepen it, but he knew they didn't have time to indulge where it might lead this morning.

He left her to get ready for her day and returned downstairs to do the same. When he walked into the apartment he found Dembe already prepared for the day. He was sitting at the dining room table with a pot of tea and the remains of his breakfast.

"I take it that Agent Keen has forgiven you again. If you hadn't called me last night I would have been concerned that she may have done you some harm since you were gone so long." Dembe said only slightly kidding. He had been worried what was going to happen when she called him up the night before. She could be unpredictable; as a pen in his neck within hours of meeting him had proved.

Red wasn't sure he was ready to talk about what was happening between the two of them yet. Dembe was almost the younger brother he never had and he knew he could trust him with anything. He was used to the dark side of Red. Outside of only a handful of people that was the only side he showed the world. Dembe knew the other Red, the one that would do anything to help a friend in need. The one that would sit by a hospital bed without complaint until he knew the person would recover. There are few people in Dembe's life like this.

"She has a remarkable capacity for forgiveness my friend. She not only forgave me but admitted to having feelings for me. I don't think I'm just an asset for her now. I hope these feelings don't fade away in the light of the day." Red said the last almost to himself.

Dembe drove them to the post office. Red was prepared to explain away Lizzie arriving with them by explaining they'd driven her directly to her motel after dinner. That would also explain her car being left in the parking lot overnight.

He refused to provide her with the name of the next Blacklister. He told her she would find out with the rest of the group when they arrived. She wanted to protest that he almost always shared the name of the next target before telling the rest of the group. She held off wondering if this was a test that Red was conducting to see if she expected different treatment in their professional lives now that they were growing closer in their personal one.

Red sat quietly in the backseat reading the morning paper, but with one eye observing Lizzie's reactions. He really had no reason to keep the name from her, he simply didn't feel the need to share it with her first. He saw her open her mouth and it appeared that she was going to say something, then she closed it and leaned back in her seat.

"Good morning," Red said in greeting to the assembled group of Ressler, Samar and Aram.

Only Aram replied with a "Good morning Mr. Reddington, Agent Keen." Lizzie gave him a smile in response before settling on one of the stools near his station in the bullpen.

"Have any of you heard of the Longevity Initiative?" Red asked the group. When he didn't receive any indications that they'd heard of it before he continued. "Last night police officer on routine patrol was murdered. He'd pulled over a panel truck in a search for contraband. What wasn't routine about the search is what he discovered in the back of the van, which ultimately lead to his death. When backup arrived they discovered three corpses with their skulls removed and their brains exposed. I have every reason to believe they are tied to the Longevity Initiative. I have it on good authority one of their lines of research has proven promising. As all such research must it has move on to human testing. These three corpses are likely the unsuccessful result of this testing."

An uncomfortable silence met his announcement. The thought of someone experimenting on human brains while still attached to a living being was even more gruesome than their usual cases.

"Do you know who is in charge of this group?" Lizzie asked finally.

"I do. His name is Roger Hobbs. And I know this since he approached me about investing in it. I turned him down."

"Wait, you know Roger Hobbs, the tech giant?" Aram asked incredulously.

Red had to grin slightly at Aram's reaction. Sometimes it was fun to spring these surprises on more than just Lizzie.

"I do and he's smarter than your average bear. You'll need to be very careful in your questioning. He has friends in very high places. They won't be happy if you accuse him of a crime without proof. Lizzie can I have a word with you before I leave?" Red asked as he moved towards her office.

She followed him into her office where the blinds were still closed. Her thought was he wanted a moment in private to say goodbye or maybe she was just projecting her own desire for a goodbye kiss.

"Lizzie, Dembe gave me a piece of news before we left the Audrey. Tom has been spotted in the area. I want you to be extra cautious when you are alone. I'm not sure what he's doing back here. I attempted to locate him and get him to come back to accept responsibility for the harbormaster's murder. He refused the request through his employer. As far as he knew Tom was still on assignment in Germany. If he's here, he likely has people looking for him. Some very dangerous people. I know for a fact his employer wants him desperately. Danger is following him and I don't want you to get caught in the crossfire. Promise me if he reaches out to you that you'll let me know." Red requested with a grim look on his face.

Liz knew that Red hated Tom for turning double agent when he was supposed to be watching her for him. But, she believed that Red wouldn't harm Tom unless he did something to endanger her directly.

"Okay, I'll let you know." she promised him.

He smiled at her response before pulling her into his arms and giving her a brief hug and a quick peck on her lips.

"Call me with any questions you have on the case." he said before walking out of her office and on to the elevator.

In the end Roger Hobbs could not be tied to the actions of Dr. Julian Powell. She knew Red would be happy to hear that. All she needed to do was pack up her bag and head on home. Home . . . . that was a wonderful word. As hard as she fought against accepting the apartment she was glad she had it to go back to tonight.

Ring. Ring.

Lizzie pulled out her cell phone. The screen displayed the number as unknown. It wasn't Red checking up on her.

"Keen" she answered.

"Liz it's me. I wondered if you could meet me to discuss why I came back." Tom asked her anxiously.

This call didn't surprise her as much as she thought it would. After all Red did warn her this morning that Tom was in the area. She hated herself for contemplating agreeing to meet with him after everything that had happened between them. It came down to who she trusted more, Red or Tom. A choice between a man that spent years lying to her or the man that has never lied to her. It really wasn't a choice at all.

"I'm sorry Tom I have plans for tonight. Red knows you are in town. I suggest you leave while you still have a chance. Goodbye Tom." she said and disconnected the call.

Lizzie arrived at the Audrey still thinking about the call from Tom. He called her again and again on the drive home. She knew that she had to tell Red that Tom made contact with her. She decided she'd call from her apartment.

After opening the apartment door she was once again overwhelmed by the beauty that was her apartment. How could she have ever considered turning this down?

She started making herself comfortable as soon as the door closed behind her. Her jacket was laid over the back of the couch and her weapon was laid on the table behind the couch. As she poured herself a glass of wine her phone started ringing once again. 'Tom get a clue' was the thought running through her head. She stopped on her way to the couch to grab her phone from her jacket. She was happy to see that the missed call wasn't from an unknown number. This time the screen showed Nick's Pizza. She really needed to get the story behind that name from Red one of these days. She hit 'Call back' next to Nick's Pizza and made herself comfortable.

"Lizzie I hope I didn't call you at a bad time." Red said by way of a greeting.

"No, I just left my phone in my jacket and missed your call. I was going to call you anyway." Lizzie told him before taking a sip from her glass. Red really had great taste in wine.

"I'm delighted to hear that. Did you want anything in particular or did you just miss the sound of my voice?" he said teasing her a bit.

She could literally hear the smile on his face. That surprised her a bit. Nearly tow years ago he was a complete mystery. Now she could tell what his expression was from just the sound of his voice.

"I always want to hear your voice Red. I just thought that I'd do what you asked me to do and let you know that Tom has reached out to me. He wanted to meet. I told him I had plans for tonight."

Silence was the only sound coming from Red's end of the phone. She pulled the phone down to see if the call was still connected, it was.

"Red?" she prompted.

"I'm sorry Lizzie I'm still here. Do you mind if I come over to discuss this with you?"

"Of course you can. Just let yourself in with the key I'm sure you have somewhere. I'm going to take a quick shower." Lizzie told him, not missing the sound of a quick indrawn breath.

She was going to be the death of him. How was he supposed to make plans to deal with Tom with the thought of her naked and wet running through his brain.

"We'll be there shortly." Red said before hanging up.

Lizzie smiled at his reaction. He was so flustered he didn't even deny her statement about him still having a key to her place. A few months, heck a few weeks ago she would have demanded that he give it back. Now she liked knowing he could get in if he needed to, especially with Tom hanging around.

Red let himself into the apartment a little later than he first intended. They stopped on the way and picked up some take out for dinner. Dembe was down in their apartment eating an indecent amount of food. He told Red that he wouldn't wait up for him with a broad smile on his face. There was no doubt that he was happy to see Liz and Red together.

He was getting plates and silverware out when Lizzie made her way into the kitchen.

"Hello Lizzie. I brought dinner. I thought we could eat while we talk about Tom. Would you mind grabbing something to drink while I take the food to the table?"

They were soon settled at the table. Lizzie didn't know what she expected, but fried chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy, corn on the cob, and biscuits was a surprise.

"This isn't what I would have expected you to bring for dinner."

Red chuckled. "I like the occasional fried chicken dinner. This little place on D street has the best chicken I've had in years.

"Trust you to know the place the with the best chicken in D.C." Lizzie said taking a bite of chicken, barely holding in the moan of pleasure that tried to slip out. It really was delicious.

"You said that Tom called you. What did he want?" Red asked with a poorly disguised moan of his own. It had been a long time since he'd allowed himself to have meal so high in fat and calories.

"He wanted me to meet him to discuss why he was in town. I refused. I didn't answer when he called back. What do you have planned? I can tell by your expression that you have one."

Red didn't answer immediately. The fact that she refused to meet with Tom pleased him immensely. He tried to work out all the possible variables of dealing with Mr. Keen. He'd already tried leaving him alone as long as he left Lizzie alone. It didn't appear that this course would work. He needed to meet with him face to face to determine whether Tom would remain a problem or not.

"Call him and ask him to meet you at the address Dembe is going to give to you. I need to talk to him and then decide our course of action. Do you understand that he may not walk away? If he's not going to leave voluntarily I may need to make sure he can't be used against us." Red told her quietly.

"I understand Red. I'll leave it up to you. I find that I can't make good decisions when I'm around him." Lizzie hated admitting this to him, she felt weak having to admit this to him.

Red texted Dembe telling him to give Lizzie the address of an abandoned store front in Baltimore. He wanted to keep this meeting outside of D.C.

After Lizzie called Tom and arranged to meet with him the next day they made their way back to her bedroom. As much as Red would like to move things along a bit he realized that the night before he might kill her ex-husband was probably not the best time to make a move.


	8. Chapter 8

A/N I'm sorry it's taken so long to get the next chapter posted. I wanted to have a beta review this chapter. It took me a bit longer accomplishing this than I thought it would. This chapter is much better thanks to my beta HeatherPeters.

Disclaimer - standard disclaimer applies. I own nothing, not my house, my car or the Blacklist. Pity me please.

Early the next morning Red and Dembe dropped Lizzie off at the post office before making their way to Baltimore. The meeting with Tom was scheduled at eleven.

"Did you get a report from Kate this morning? I'm sure Tom will be reconnoitering the area around the meeting site. I want to make sure our men are in place." Red asked Dembe from his normal spot in the car's backseat.

"She called right before you came downstairs. Baz's men were in place at 1:00 am. They saw someone matching Tom's description in the area at approximately 5:00 am. They tracked his movements through the nearby streets and alleys. He then returned to a blue Mustang that was parked a couple of blocks away. They expanded their perimeter another block in all directions. As soon as they spot him again we will be notified." Dembe reported glancing at him in the rear view mirror.

Red focused on his normal stack of morning newspapers from around the globe. They still had almost an hour before they joined Kaplan and Baz at one of their safe houses located in Baltimore. He wanted to discuss the plan that they had put into play the night before. Red needed to make sure that Tom would be unable to shoot his way out when he realized that Lizzie wouldn't be attending the meeting.

"Raymond what are your plans for Tom Keen?" Kate asked the question that was at the forefront of everyone's mind.

"I guess that depends on Tom. I'll make it clear that now that Lizzie has been cleared of any charges in the death of the harbormaster that he needs to leave for good. If he refuses then I'll make sure that he won't bother Lizzie again."

If his answer surprised anyone they didn't show it. They all knew he would go to any lengths to protect his Lizzie.

"How does Agent Keen feel about the possibility that you might kill her ex-husband?" Kate again asked the question for all of them.

"I told her last night. She understands that she will never be safe as long as Tom can sneak back into her life when she least expects it."

A cell phone broke the silence that had fallen over the group. Baz pulled out his phone and answered it. After a short one sided conversation he put the phone away.

"The perimeter guards are reporting that same Mustang just parked a couple of streets over. They are tailing him at a discrete distance. He's making his way to the location." Baz told the group.

"Alert your guards inside the location. We don't want Tom taking them by surprise. Once he's inside and they've taken him down I'll have a chat with him."

BLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLBL

The take down didn't happen as cleanly as Red would have liked. He would be sending death benefits to the families of some of his men. Tom had gotten his licks in before being wounded and unarmed. By the time Red made his way into the room Tom was tied to a chair in the middle of the room, his blood forming a pool under him.

"Tom, I was hoping to never see you again. Why didn't you just leave town for good while you had the chance? Now you are going to force me to make sure you never bother Lizzie again." Red told him from where he stood, looking down at the bound man from a few steps away.

"Lizzie will never forgive you if you kill me. She's still in love with her husband despite everything. It would invalidate all those years if she admits that it was a mistake. She'd have to admit what a bad profiler she was to be taken in by me." Tom sneered confidently.

Red just smiled down at him.

"Have you considered how I knew about your meeting here? Lizzie is aware that I'm here. I was going to give you a chance to get out of this meeting alive, but I don't think I can trust you to leave and stay away after what you've just said. I made it clear to her you might not walk away and she was surprisingly agreeable."

It was apparent that Tom hadn't considered Lizzie setting him up, or that she wouldn't have begged Red not to kill him.

"You're lying. I know her better than you do. She'd never be okay with killing someone in cold blood." Tom told him, still confident in his assessment of Lizzie's character.

"Tom, I don't think you know the person that Lizzie is now. She's changed a lot in the past few months and knows that you aren't the person she thought she loved. You've lied to her and killed a person that she nearly went to prison for, she's more than done with you." Red told him. He found that he was actually enjoying the chance to show Tom how little he knew about the person that Lizzie was now. "But, I must ask you. Has she always tried to hog the entire bed or is this something she only does with me? I must say it's almost impossible to not end up with her wrapped around me when I wake up in the morning."

Tom didn't try to hide his anger at what Red was saying. He really believed he still had a chance with Lizzie. He knew he just had to show her that he really cared. If what Reddington was saying was true, it was obvious that Lizzie had moved on.

He appeared to give up convincing Red that Lizzie didn't want him harmed. He moved on to his next topic almost desperately.

"I believe you. Let me go and I'll disappear. You'll never see me again."

Red stood looking at him. Despite the common perception of him as a cold blooded killer he didn't kill without thought. He wanted to give Tom the benefit of the doubt for Lizzie's sake, but he knew that Tom couldn't be trusted to not cause problems for them later. He took a gun from Dembe and turned back to Tom.

"I'm sorry Tom. I don't trust you to stay away from her."

With that said he pointed the gun at Tom's head and pulled the trigger. He remembered what Lizzie had told him in that dungeon of a ship's brig. He did him the courtesy of looking him in the eyes as he killed him.

"Have Kaplan take care of the body. Then make sure our men are returned to their families. Standard cover stories and benefits paid. Let's head back to D.C." Red told Dembe before heading out to the car.

BLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLBL

They arrived at the Post Office a little after lunch. Red met Lizzie in her office where she sat doing some of the endless paperwork the FBI required of their agents. She was alone in the office which would make the coming discussion easier for them both.

"Hello Lizzie," Red said as he closed her office door. She'd seen Dembe take up his position outside of the door. No one would be able to enter the office unannounced.

"Red what happened? Did you get him to leave or did you have to do something more permanent?" she asked trying to be a little vague with her question, just in case the office was bugged. After everything she'd been through the past couple of years it wouldn't surprise her if it was in fact bugged.

Red sat in Ressler's chair, then rolled closer to her desk. He didn't answer until he'd sat down and placed his hat on her desk.

"He won't be bothering you again. Thanks to him I'll need to recruit a couple of more men. He didn't make it easy to get rid of him." Red answered her in as oblique a way as he could and still expect her to understand him.

Lizzie simply nodded in understanding. She had resigned herself to the fact that Red might need to do something drastic to get her free of Tom. It was still a shock to realize she'd never see Tom again.

"I wanted to let you know I have some business that I have to take care of tonight. I'm afraid you'll get to spend tonight enjoying some time alone in your new place." Red told her as he placed his hat back on his head.

"Wait! When did this come up? Are you sure you have to go tonight?" Lizzie asked frantically, rising from her seat behind her desk.

He turned to look at her again.

"It's something that came up on the drive back from Baltimore. I'm sorry it has to be tonight. I'll be back tomorrow and we can have dinner." Red leaned over and gave her a soft kiss on her cheek.

Late that night Lizzie heard a knock at her apartment door. She grabbed her gun, then looked out the peep hole in the door and was shocked to see the tall black man.

"Dembe?" she asked after opening the door. "What are you doing here? Where's Red?"

"May I come in?" he asked her quietly.

"Of course, sorry."

She pulled the door open fully, stepped aside, and let him in.

"Come in and sit down." she told him before walking into her den.

Once they were seated she turned to Dembe anxiously.

"Raymond is fine. He's in our apartment. I realize that he told you he had business tonight. If you are going to be in a relationship with him, you need to understand that certain actions may result in a need for him to pull away for a time."

Lizzie didn't know what to say. She once commented to Red that Ressler wasn't like him. He couldn't kill someone in cold blood and walk away unscathed on the other side. She was ashamed that she'd thought that Red could kill someone without causing him any pain. She wished that she could take back those words.

"What's he up to, Dembe?" she asked him quietly.

"He's well on his way to getting drunk. It's the only time he ever gets that drunk."

She silently nodded her head. She'd seen him tipsy only once. That was during the Ruslan Denisov case. It had been a surprise to hear him slurring his words when they'd first arrived at their hotel. She suspected now that it was due to her treatment of him before they left.

"Give me the apartment number and the key Dembe. I'm not going to let him deal with what he did to Tom on his own. He did it for me."

With a smile Dembe gave her the key and the apartment number. It ended up being only a couple of floors below her own.

She opened the door without knocking. Why knock when you had a key was her thought. The apartment was an almost exact copy of hers. It was decorated in what she thought must be a style more to Red's taste. She entered the den to find him standing next to the window overlooking the lights of D.C.

"Red? Why did you tell me you were going out of town on business? You could have come to me. I understand now that what you said once about killing someone and coming out okay on the other side is true. You don't have to be alone." she told him gently.

"Dembe doesn't know when to stop meddling." Red said without looking at her. "And, just to clarify, I said I had business to attend to tonight. I didn't say I was going out of town."

She walked over to the window and stood next to him without looking at him. She kept her eyes on his reflection in the window.

"He felt I needed to be here to see how what you did to Tom affects you."

The affect on Red was obvious. Not only was he drunk, he was more disheveled than she'd ever seen him. His suit jacket and tie were discarded on the couch behind them. His vest remained, but unbuttoned, as was the first three buttons of his shirt. His sleeves were rolled up exposing forearms that looked stronger than she expected. Red didn't strike her as the type of man that spent much time in the gym. From what she'd observed, the extent of his workout routine was a morning walk through the park. Good enough exercise for a man his age, but it didn't give him the muscles she was seeing. She wondered what else he was hiding under his designer suits.

"I'm fine Lizzie. Go ahead and go back to your apartment. Everything will be back to normal in the morning." Red said obviously lying to her for the first time, but she couldn't bring herself to call him on it.

"Yeah that's not going to happen. Come on let's go to bed." Lizzie said taking his hand in hers and pulling him behind her towards the master bedroom. Red could have easily broken away from her hold, but either didn't want to risk upsetting her or was silently admitting he was glad she was here.

"Go ahead and get ready for bed." Lizzie said, giving him a gentle push towards the bathroom after placing a tender kiss on his cheek.

He entered the bathroom without argument. He hated for her to see him this way, but he was unable to say that he wanted her to leave. The need he had for her presence at times made him weak. They needed to be more careful if they were going to keep their relationship a secret. He was going to need to move on to his next safe house tomorrow. He was sure Lizzie wouldn't like him staying somewhere other than with her. She needed to understand this is what kept him from being captured by the FBI or his other enemies over the years.

When Red left the bathroom it was to find Lizzie sitting up in bed. He'd stripped down to a t-shirt and boxers to sleep in, the same garb he'd worn each night he shared a bed with Lizzie. He didn't think she was quite ready to learn that he preferred sleeping in the nude. As he settled on his side of the bed, Lizzie turned to him.

"So, how drunk are you?"

The question caught him by surprise. His level of inebriation didn't matter if he was going to sleep. It wasn't as if he was going to be taking the Mercedes out for a spin.

"I'm sober enough to sleep. Why do you ask?"

"Because I don't want you questioning in the morning what happens here tonight. You might think it's odd timing for this, but I don't care. We've already admitted that we love each other. I think we've waited long enough to act on our feelings." she told him before pushing the covers down and crawling onto his lap.

"Lizzie you don't have to do this to make me believe that you know I feel some remorse when I kill someone. I don't think you'd lie to me about that." he told her without looking at her.

Lizzie was determined to make him realize this had nothing to do with Tom.

"Red look at me." she commanded.

He looked at her instantly. The response was almost automatic.

"Do you love me?" she asked while looking him in the eyes.

"Yes." he answered without hesitation.

"Do you want me?" came her next question.

"Of course."

"Do you need to take a little blue pill?" she knew this question was a bit dangerous, but she wanted to pull him out of his funk. If getting him a little angry would do it she wouldn't hesitate. This quiet subdued Red wasn't the man she wanted at the moment.

"If you are trying to goad me into getting angry you'll have to try harder. I'm perfectly capable of performing without the help of drugs. Showing this old man a little skin might be a good start." Red said, deciding to play along.

She leaned in and pressed her lips against his own. Slowly the kiss built into something they'd never shared as of now. The passion grew between them as their lips parted and tongues tasted. It wasn't the first time they'd kissed in the last few days, but they knew this wasn't going to end as chastely as the others had.

Red's fingers slid under the edge of her sleep shirt. He slowly slid his hands around her sides. One moment they were caressing her back, the next he was stroking them higher and higher, pushing her shirt up in front until he'd bared her breasts to the cool night air. He watched as her nipples tighten in response. She reached down and pulled the top up and off. She didn't want anything between her and his large warm hands. She reached down to grab his t-shirt.

"Off," was all she said.

When he hesitated she continued to pull it.

"Dammit Red I know about the scars."

"Knowing about them and seeing them are two different things. I'm sure they look worse in real life than they do in the pictures you've seen from my files." he said still trying to block her hands to keep his shirt on.

"You are being an ass. I love you and I don't care about them. Now for the last time, take … it … off!"

Lizzie couldn't know how much she was turning him on right now. He did always like a forceful woman. He gave in, not at all gracefully, but he pulled the shirt off and tossed it to the floor.

She immediately started running her fingers through the curly grey/blonde hair covering his chest. He resumed his own exploration of the soft skin before him. He leaned down to bring his mouth to his hands when he heard.

"Is it me being topless or being demanding that's getting such a rise out of you?" she whispered in his ear with a smile.

He had to laugh. Even in bed she refused to stop profiling him. He didn't care if she figured out which it was, he was just going to roll with it.

He drew each breast into his mouth. He suckled and nipped at them until he got a reaction of his own out of her. He lost all track of time as he catalogued every spot that made her moan or shudder. He knew she was doing the same and let her know when she hit an area or spot that especially enjoyed her touch.

Sometime during their explorations bottoms were stripped off and their tours headed south. Lizzie had a wonderfully sensitive spot on her left thigh that Red was enjoying returning to again and again so he could hear that high voice that nearly made him come each time he heard it.

Lizzie discovered that her past partners were very underwhelming when compared to the package that Red kept well hidden inside his immaculately tailored trousers. She never would have believed something this impressive was there waiting for her to finally uncover.

"Red I can't wait any longer. I need to feel you inside me. We can go for a marathon foreplay session some other time." She wasn't above begging at this point.

He was a little disappointed that he wouldn't get to savor the taste of the wetness he was feeling against his fingers. He was gently playing with the little nub hidden in the folds between her legs, but hearing her say she needed him would make the delay worth it. He slid a finger inside tentatively to find her dripping wet and ready for him. Next time he promised himself he'd make sure to spend his time discovering the delights she had waiting for him there. He wasn't ashamed to admit that he couldn't wait any longer either. He needed to feel her around him. They had waited long enough.

He rolled them over so she was back on top of him. He hadn't been so far gone that he missed her reaction to seeing him fully erect for the first time. He didn't know for certain how many partners she'd had, or how they compared, but he wanted her to be in control for their first time.

She sat up and scooted back where she could wrap her hand around his cock and spread the pre-cum that was leaking from the head down around the shaft. She knew she was more than ready, but with his size she wanted all the help she could get to smooth the way. She placed a hand on his chest for balance as she guided him to her entrance. She slowly allowed her body to sink down on the head. She knew this would be the hardest part. With a little more pressure and a little twist the head slipped inside. She quickly sank down taking almost all of him inside before she felt as if he'd gone as deep as he could. She was worried to feel a good part still waiting to be taken. She began to ride him slow and easy, taking a little more each time she went down.

She was so focused on her own sensations that she nearly missed the moans pouring from the man beneath her. The words of devotion and love that were bubbling out between the moans.

He couldn't believe how incredible it felt to have her riding him like a prized stallion. He knew that she'd taken riding lessons as a teenager. He wanted to track down her riding instructor and pay her a million dollars in thanks. He knew he was babbling and saying things that might embarrass him at any other time. But, listening to his Lizzie begging him for more and screaming how good it felt he didn't care about anything other than holding on until she came. His own pleasure could wait.

Only moments after these thoughts ran through his blood deprived brain he felt her clamping down on him hard. The feeling of her internal muscles milking him triggered his own explosion.

Her hands slowly slid up his sweaty chest. She draped her body over him. He ran his hands over her back until he recovered enough to reach down and pull the blankets up over them. That was the last either of them remembered until the next morning.


End file.
